Tag: Royal Mail

2,500 post offices to be axed in the UK from next summer

Posted by | Dec 15, 2006 | |

The government yesterday unveiled plans to close 2,500 rural and urban post offices over 18 months – the fastest closure programme in the history of the network.
The cuts, which are expected to start next summer after national and local consultations, will slash the network to about 11,700 branches, fewer than half the peak of 25,000 in the 1960s. The trade and industry secretary, Alistair Darling, said a GBP1.7bn support package would be provided to fund rationalisation and maintain the GBP150m-a-year payments to the rural network at least until 2011.
He told the Commons that the post office network was losing GBP4m a week and had 4 million fewer customers than two years ago. The “big problem,” he said, was that “people are simply not using post offices as they once did … There is widespread recognition that the current size of the network is unsustainable.”

Royal Mail said it welcomed the proposals and would study their impact on its wider funding needs, which include new investment in the letters business, funding for the pension fund deficit and offering shares to employees.

Mr Darling outlined a series of criteria which the new network would have to meet: 99% of the population must be within three miles of an office and 90% within one mile. In deprived urban areas 99% of the population must be within one mile while in remote areas at least 95% should be within six miles.

The slimmed-down network will be supported by some 500 new outlets, including pubs, churches and village halls and even mobile offices.

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Postwatch response to DTI’s post office closure proposals

Posted by | Dec 14, 2006 | |

On 14 December 2006 the DTI launched its consultation on rationalising the current post office network. The consultation proposed funding the closure of 2,500 post offices throughout the UK. Postwatch has today submitted its response, which includes 99 recommendations.

The Postwatch response can be viewed at www.postwatch.co.uk under policy documents. The executive summary sets out Postwatch’s key recommendations.

Millie Banerjee, Chair of Postwatch, said: “We had to submit a detailed response, with many recommendations, because the DTI failed to explain the thinking behind its proposals. The DTI did not answer even such basic questions as how they arrived at the figure of 2,500 closures, why they proposed the access criteria set out in the consultation and how they plan to avoid additional unplanned closures. We have had to say so much because the DTI said so little.

“The weaknesses of the consultation may actually have made contributors think harder and could lead to a better set of decisions. Whether this happens is now up to DTI ministers. They must consider and respond fully to the complex and important issues that have been raised by us and others.

“We all want the DTI’s decision document to be a thorough, well thought out piece of work. It must unambiguously explain to customers and their representatives how and why the pain ahead will eventually result in a viable and sustainable, if somewhat smaller, nationwide network of post offices that provides reasonable access for all.

“DTI Ministers have said their decision will be made within 3 weeks. This could give the impression, perhaps wrongly, that decisions have already been taken. But it is, of course, the quality of the decision, not the speed at which it is made, that counts. Ministers will need to demonstrate that they have given the many hundreds of responses the careful consideration they deserve.”

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Sorting the UK post office network

Posted by | Dec 14, 2006 | |

The closure of any post office is a loss to the customers and community involved. But Postwatch recognises that the current situation of increasing financial losses and fewer transactions cannot continue.

To let the current drip-drip of unplanned closures continue would be irresponsible and would undoubtedly lead to some areas losing access to post office services. The government’s consultation on future funding and structural arrangements for the post office network is the first step in putting in place a strategic plan.

For over a year, Postwatch has been urging the government to propose a sustainable way of meeting customers’ post office needs. In response to the consultation, Millie Banerjee, Chair of Postwatch, said: “Today’s announcement and consultation are the first steps in providing a clear view on how the post office network will look in the future. We have consistently urged the government to provide that clarity and are pleased we now at least have proposals to work on.

“This is not a simple numbers game of how many post office buildings are to close. The focus should be on ensuring customers have access to post office services. Solutions will vary from location to location. But, for example, if a number of expensive-to-run, seldom used post offices can be replaced with a cost-effective mobile service that meets communities’ needs – doesn’t that make sense?

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Second-class report for UK postal services

Posted by | Dec 12, 2006 | |

Postal service provision is “chronically poor” throughout many areas of Britain, the chairman of the public accounts committee (PAC) has said.

Sir Edward Leigh made the critical comments as he attacked postal regulator Postcomm for its limited progress in encouraging competition within the UK postal market.

Publishing its report into the progress of Postcomm since it enforced new regulatory guidelines on the Royal Mail in March, the PAC says that while progress has been made, more is needed.

“You would expect that a new regime for the quality of postal services would aim to improve collection and delivery times and reduce the number of pieces of mail lost by Royal Mail. If so, you would be mistaken,” Sir Edward said.

“Neither of these aspects of performance is targeted under the current regime introduced in April of this year. Given that people are now receiving their mail later in the day and that over 15 million letters and parcels are being lost, stolen or damaged in a year, it is pretty clear that the interests of ordinary users of the post are not an absolute priority.”

Today’s PAC report calls on Postcomm to monitor the activities of Royal Mail more closely and foster a sense of competition within the postal market to encourage the development of more efficient procedures.

Royal Mail vociferously rejected the PAC report’s claims. A spokesperson said: “It is absolute nonsense to suggest anything other than Royal Mail’s quality of service is at record levels. Its performance is among the very best in Europe and its prices are among the very lowest.”

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